Although it was already teased by Intel at IDF, Toshiba has now officially confirmed that it will launch a Chrome OS device, we have not heard much until now. Toshiba has now decided to take on the likes of HP and Acer and launch its own version of the Chromebook. With a 13.3-inch screen and based on Intel's Haswell Celeron 2955U CPU, it is definitely pushing the boundries of cheap and "portable" Chromebook design.

Of course, thanks to the 13.3-inch screen, Toshiba will have less to none competition in the Chromebook market and despite that same larger screen and quite decent specifications, Toshiba aims to take on HP's smaller Chromebook 11 with the same price tag. The larger screen, of course, makes the Toshiba Chromebook a bit heavier than most Chromebooks around at around 1.3kg (3lbs) but it allowed Toshiba to squeeze in a much less cramped up keyboard and a heftier battery which should keep it alive for up to nine hours, according to Toshiba.

In order to fit the new Chromebook in that US $279 price tag, Toshiba had to go for a 13.3-inch 1366x768 resolution screen but the Intel Celeron 2955U CPU should give it enough performance for most, if not all, everyday office tasks. The rest of the specifications include 2GB of RAM, 16GB of built in storage, two USB 3.0 ports, HDMI output, webcam and SD card reader.

According to Toshiba, the WiFi-only edition should start shipping on February 16th for US $279 and the company could eventually launch a 4G version as well.

There's been a steady flow of details regarding Acer's upcoming C720 Chromebook and according to the latest leak, this 11.6-inch Intel Celeron 2955U Haswell-equipped Chromebook might end up with an optional touchscreen as well.

While the Intel Celeron 2955U and support for up to 4GB of RAM should birng significantly better performance and more importantly longer battery life when compared to earlier ChromeOS notebooks, the new Acer C720 might also end up with an optional touchscreen as well.

According to details, Acer'S Chromebook C720 will be offered with either 2GB or 4GB of RAM as well as 16GB or 32GB of storage. It will not be the only Chromebook to feature a touch panel considering that Google's own Chromebook Pixel was equipped with one, but Acer's version will definitely be a lot cheaper than the $1,299 Pixel.

According to the rest of the details, the 11.6-inch screen will feature 1366x768 resolution and the C720 will also come with HDMI, USB 3.0, card reader, 720p webcam and 802.11abgn WiFi as well as a 3950mAh battery that should keep it going for around 6 hours. Unfortunately, it appears that both the RAM and the battery are not user replaceable which will not bode well with the DIY crowd and more experienced users.